|
Haire cosponsors bill to aid small businesses
As one of his first actions of the new legislative session, N.C. Rep. Phil Haire cosponsored legislation that seeks to provide a tax credit to small business owners who provide health insurance for their employees.
The "Small Business Health Insurance Credit" bill was introduced Jan. 31 by Reps. Hugh Holliman (D-Davidson), Alice Bordsen (D-Alamance), Bruce Goforth (D-Buncombe) and Deborah Ross (D-Wake) and referred to the Finance Committee for further action.
"Our state's small businesses are the engine that continues to drive our economy and employ our people," Haire said. "However, mounting costs such as providing health insurance and other benefits to their employees are forcing business owners to make some tough choices. We must assist the business owners who are trying to do right by their employees and offer tax credits to help them afford health insurance."
The legislation allows a small business owner who provides health benefits for all employees to receive a state tax credit equal to 100 percent of the employer's cost of providing the benefits, up to a maximum of $400 for each employee. The credit can be taken against the income or franchise tax. To be eligible, the employer must pay at least 50 percent of the premiums for health coverage that meets or exceeds the minimum provisions of a basic health care plan of coverage recommended by the Small Employer Carrier Committee. To qualify as a small business, the employer must have no more than 25 employees.
"I've met with small business owners in Bryson City, Franklin, Sylva and Waynesville and they all express the same frustration – they want to know how to provide the health insurance benefits that their employees deserve without bankrupting their business," Haire said.
In 2001, the average employer's costs for health insurance coverage ranged from $3,024 to $4,971 per year, depending on the number of family members covered. Data for 1998-2002 from the Department of Insurance indicates that the average annual cost rose at double-digit rates.
Nationally, half of U.S. non-farm private output and employment is generated by small firms with 500 or fewer employees. In North Carolina in 2003, 46.7 percent of the state's non-farm private workforce, or 1,601,230 people, was employed by the state's approximately 650,900 small businesses.
|
